Gaetano Daniele Di Guardo was born in 1979 in Aci Sant’Antonio, in the province of Catania. After studying art, Gaetano went on to specialise in figurative painting at the Accademia delle Belle Arti, graduating with the highest marks. In addition to painting mainly on canvas in a dreamlike, surreal style, he teaches courses in local schools and introduces young people to the recurring techniques of Renaissance art. In recent years he rediscovered the values of the Sicilian painting tradition and became impassioned about cart decoration, frequenting specialised workshops and learning from the most important masters.

Enamel and oil, 60 x 151 x 68.2 cm This refrigerator, painted with motifs from the Sicilian cart, captures all the irony of popular wisdom. On the front are satirical scenes of the effects of opposite behaviours: an enterprising merchant whose business acumen has brought him wealth, and another reduced to poverty by his lack thereof. Two sbarruni, the vertical elements that divide the sides of the cart into decorative sections, enrich the scene. The side panels depict two figures from the tarot: the goddess of fortune bestows wealth and prosperity, while the hanged man, metaphor of fickle destiny, calls for flexibility and adaptability. Cameos of paladins, wind roses and banderoles known as cartocci, typical of the Catanese school of painting, enrich the scene.